Sapphire, Clumsy Sleeping Beauty

TIRED and starving, Sapphire plopped down on the sofa as soon as she got home from her part-time job. Every day, she had to work hard to earn money for her mother’s dialysis session by Saturday.

Sapphire worked at a fast-food restaurant by morning, was a house helper by afternoon, and a tutor every weekend. She also did online and direct-selling whenever she had the chance. Every penny that she earned went to her mother’s medication, and a small percentage was for their daily needs. Her life was really tough because she had to do all that alone at the young age of twenty.

She opened her bag and took out the stir-fried noodles that she bought on her way home. It was the only decent meal that her money could afford at the moment. She left the sofa and strolled to the kitchen.

Sapphire was setting the table when her mother appeared. As usual, she was in her wheelchair because her body was too weak now to walk around the house.

“At last, you’re home,” her mother said in a cold tone.

“Ma…” Sapphire crouched in front of her so that they could see each other’s faces at eye level. “I’m sorry if I always leave you with Sharlene…” She was referring to their neighbor, who happened to be an unregistered nurse. “You know that I am doing this for you…”

To her shock, her mother cried out loud.

“This is not what I planned for your future…What I want is for you to finish school.”

“Mama…” She cupped her mother’s hands. “I will find ways to continue my studies. But for now, my priority is to provide you comfort.”

“Sapphire, no matter what you do, I would end up dying—”

“Mama, please…stop saying that.” Sapphire tried hard to fight back her tears because she knew that her tears would only add to her mother’s agony. “You’re the only family that I have. If you leave me, how would I live?”

Her mother cupped her face.

“Now, I don’t really have a choice.”

Sapphire’s forehead creased. She didn’t know what her mother was talking about. What choice was she referring to?

THAT DAY, Raquel asked her daughter to bring her to a place where she could change the course of their lives—Empire Ville.

“Ma, what are we doing here?” Sapphire asked as the taxi entered the exclusive subdivision.

The taxi pulled over in front of the guardhouse for checking. The driver opened the window to the backseat, and one of the guards peeked in.

“Good morning, Madam. May I know where you are heading to?” the guard asked politely.

“We’re going to Don Ignacio Laurel’s residence.”

“Madam, I’m sorry. Don Ignacio Laurel does not accept any visitor outside his family—”

“Then call his mansion and tell him that his daughter Raquel would like to see him.”

Sapphire turned to her with mouth wide open.

“Mama, do you mean Don Ignacio Laurel of Royal Corporation?”

Raquel nodded slowly. She grabbed her daughter’s hand.

“Sapphire, I’m sorry if I didn’t tell you everything about me.” She heaved a sigh. “But it’s about time to let you know that I came from a wealthy family. But because I fell in love with your father, Papa disowned me…”

“Oh, God…” Sapphire let out a deep and long sigh. “We’re not on a television drama, right?”

Raquel shook her head.

Soon the guard let them pass the gates.

SAPPHIRE could not believe her eyes. She thought it was a dream that she was inside a mansion—her grandfather’s home. But the unwelcomed stares from the people in the living room made her realize that everything was real. And what timing, they seemed to be having a family gathering. Oh, well…they were family after all…

“Raquel…is that really you?” the oldest woman in the house asked.

So, this was the infamous Gloria Laurel, her grandmother. She still looked young in her old age. Sapphire had only seen her in the news, whether on television, in newspapers, or in an online article. The old woman was known for supporting a lot of charitable institutions.

Her grandmother was about to come to her mother, but Don Ignacio stopped her.

“Don’t come near her, Gloria. She’s not our daughter anymore,” Don Ignacio said in a cold voice.

Sapphire felt bad for her mother. It was a not-so-good reunion. Then, she was suddenly reminded of her father’s words whenever she would feel angry and chose not to talk with them. Her late father would always say that a child might forget about his parent, but a parent would always remember his child. It seemed to her that it did not apply to Don Ignacio. He had already forgotten his estranged daughter.

She wanted to get her mother out of the mansion, but her feet wouldn’t move. It felt like she was stuck to the ground.

“Forgive me, Papa.” Her mother started crying. “I won’t say that I regret my choice back then. Albert loved me, and he took care of our family. But I want to apologize because I neglect my responsibilities to this family…”

“You shouldn’t have wasted your time coming here, Raquel. Your apology is too late. You have no place in this family anymore. With your current state, you can no longer serve my company. You’re as good as dead.”

Sapphire could not believe what she heard. Don Ignacio was talking to his own daughter as if her mother was some kind of a slave. She could not take it any longer, she had to butt in.

“For your information, my mother isn’t like that.” She pressed her lips together.

Everyone’s gaze turned to her.

“Sapphire,” her mother scolded her. “He’s your grandfather. Talk to him politely.”

How could she respect someone who didn’t show them respect? Sapphire wanted to voice her thoughts again, but she chose to keep it to herself.

“I understand very well that I no longer have a place here. But I didn’t come here to force myself into this family again. I came here because of my daughter.”

Her eyes widened. “M-mama!”

“Our Sapphire is a better version of me. She’s smart. I know she can carry your name very well.”

“Mama, what are you talking about?” She gripped her mother’s arm.

“Quiet, Sapphire. Let me handle this,” her mother said in a cold voice. “She’s your granddaughter, Papa. Take her in.”

Don Ignacio nodded slowly.

“You haven’t changed, Raquel. You really know how to make a great deal, and that’s what I like about you. Sadly, you failed me…Anyway, how can I be so sure that she won’t be like you?”

Sapphire clenched her hands until her fingernails dug into her palms. It kind of felt like her mother was selling her soul to the devil…

DON IGNACIO stared at Sapphire sternly. It seemed that he was analyzing her. But for Sapphire, her grandfather was doing it wrong. She firmly believed that you could not judge a book by its cover. There is a lot more to discover from the inside.

Her grandfather cleared his throat afterwards.

“Alright, I’m going to accept your daughter. She will resume her studies at Lycevm de Royale University. Starting tomorrow, she will live here with me at Empire Ville. Sapphire will enjoy all the perks of being my granddaughter, but on one condition…”

Her heart started beating like crazy. Whatever condition Don Ignacio had in mind, it already made her nervous. Sapphire turned to her mother when she felt her touch.

“Name it,” said her mother.

“She shall prove herself and her worth to this family. If she fails to do so, I will strip her off of everything.”

Don Ignacio’s words echoed at the back of her mind. His condition sounded more like a threat to her.

“You can do it, Sapphire…I have faith in you.” Her mother pressed her hand.

She could not say a word. If truth be told, she felt mad at her mother right now. Sapphire was against her decision.

SAPPHIRE was silent after they left the mansion. She was acting cold when they got home. Raquel knew why. Her daughter was definitely mad about what she had done. But what else could she do? That was the only way she knew to give her a good life. She had to be sure that Sapphire would not be alone once she was gone.

Raquel could feel that her time was about to end. Her body was getting weaker and weaker. Now, she was barely surviving with two sessions of dialysis per week. But she had to bear it because Sapphire had been working hard to earn money for her medication. And it pained her to watch her beloved daughter sweating and in pain whenever she got home from work. It should have been the other way around. Raquel should be the one working hard to provide Sapphire with a better life and send her to a good school. But she was at home, sitting in a wheelchair all day.

“Sapphire…” Raquel called her daughter. She could not take the silent war any longer.

“How could you do this to me, Mama?” Sapphire snapped.

She could see in her face how angry she was, but Sapphire was trying to control her anger. Her face was red all over.

“I am your daughter, right? Why are you giving me away like I’m some sort of…” Sapphire’s voice trailed off, soon she was crying.

Raquel reached her daughter’s hands and pressed them gently.

“Sapphire, please understand that I’m doing this for you because I love you. I want you to finish your studies. I want to see you living a good life. The life that we have right now is not the life that you deserve. These precious hands of yours…” She caressed her hands. “They should be holding a book and a pen. If you only know how much it pains me waiting for you all day knowing that you’re out there working hard. I keep blaming myself, Sapphire. If not for me…If not for these malfunctioning kidneys…” Tears rolled forth on Raquel’s cheeks. “I’m not giving you away, honey. You belong there…”

Sapphire crouched in front of her and buried her face on her lap. “Mama…”

She caressed her daughter’s hair. “I love you, Sapphire…I love you so much. I will spend the remaining days of my life rooting for you. You are my princess, remember that. And a princess like you must live in a palace. You should claim what is rightfully yours.”

SHE HAD no choice but to fulfill her mother’s wish. Sapphire knew that was the last thing that could make her mother happy. That morning, Don Ignacio sent his men to pick them up. They brought Sapphire and her mother to a mansion much smaller than Don Ignacio’s residence, but still, it was a mansion too big for just the two of them.

House helpers greeted them, and to her surprise, a private nurse.

“Miss Sapphire.” A man wearing a suit sauntered towards her. He handed her an envelope. “These are the papers that you’ll be needing for your transfer to Lycevm de Royale University. All you have to do is go to the administration office and submit this envelope to them. And oh, I’d like to apologize that I couldn’t get you a class schedule.”

“Oh! Thank you…And uhm, you don’t have to apologize for that. I can do it for myself, though. And please tell Don Ignacio that—”

“Grandpa. From now on, you will call me Grandpa.”

Sapphire turned to the doorway and found her grandfather walking towards them.

“G-grandpa…” She swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. It would take a long time before she was comfortable addressing him like that. Sapphire couldn’t feel their connection yet. She saw him more like a Mafia boss rather than a loving grandfather. “Thank you so much—”

He raised his hand and beckoned her to stop.

“You shouldn’t thank me yet. All of these are temporary. You still need to fulfill your end of the deal. Understand?”

Don Ignacio’s voice sounded authoritative enough for Sapphire to understand it.

“Y-yes, G-grandpa…”

“Ah, I heard that you do part-time jobs to earn money for your mother’s medication. You don’t have to do that anymore. Our deal covers your mother’s medical expenses. I want you to focus on your studies from now on.”

“Y-yes, Grandpa.”

“Alexander,” Don Ignacio called his right-hand man.

“Sir.” The man went to his side immediately.

“That thing, please.”

“Miss Sapphire.” Alexander was handing her a key.

Her brows furrowed. “W-what is this for?”

“The key to your car,” said Don Ignacio.

Sapphire’s eyes widened. A car for her?

“But…”

“What?” Don Ignacio looked displeased by her reaction.

“Sapphire doesn’t know how to drive a car, Papa,” her mother butted in.

“I prefer a bicycle,” she said. “I saw on our way here that the university isn’t too far from here. I can use a bicycle.”

“You want that?” Don Ignacio asked with a knotted forehead.

Sapphire nodded.

“You heard that, Alexander?”

“Yes, Sir,” Alexander said, and then he headed outside.

“But you must learn to drive a car. This summer vacation, I will enroll you in a driving school,” Don Ignacio told her.

“Yes, Grandpa.”

Of course, she had to. Sapphire couldn’t say no.